English fine gold pair cased pocket chronometer Circa 1803

Fine gold pair cased pocket chronometer
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An English fine gold pair cased pocket chronometer, circa 1803, gilded full plate movement, Earnshaw-type spring detent escapement, decoratively engraved balance cock, a mask at the neck, Pennington-type ‘double T’ balance with two brass arms and two bimetallic rims each carrying curved brass piece and with limiting screws at each end, blued steel helical spring, Pennington-type gold escape wheel, diamond endstone, fusee and chain, cylindrical pillars, signed Ellicott and Comp. Royal Exchange, London.
White enamel dial, Roman numerals, outer minute ring, large subsidiary seconds with Arabic numerals, gold hands, the hour with heart-shaped head, signed Ellicott & Compy., Royal Exchange.
Plain gold inner case, back with winding aperture, plain outer case, pendant with a d-shaped bow, both cases with maker’s mark IM incuse for James Marson or Macklin.
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Diameter: 56 mm
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Signed: Ellicott and Comp. Royal Exchange London
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Shortly before 1803, Edward Ellicott the younger sought to bring in fresh blood to his business and the name style changed to Ellicott and Company. By about 1806, James Taylor had been adopted as a partner and from this time until c.1818, the firm’s watches were inscribed Ellicott and Taylor, London (see: David Thompson, The Watches of Ellicots of London, Part I, Antiquarian Horology, Summer 1997). The movement in this watch is of particularly high quality and is unusually slim for a chronometer of the period. The double ‘T’ compensating balance is of a type generally accredited to Robert Pennington. This, and the fact that the Earnshaw-type detent escapement has Pennington’s unusual gold escape wheel and depth adjustment, strongly suggests he was Ellicott’s supplier. Further information on the Pennington balances can be found in Vaudrey Mercer’s article: The Penningtons and their Balances, Antiquarian Horology.